Similarities in Adolescent Siblings’ Substance Use: Testing Competing Pathways of Influence
Keywords
substance abuse, sibling to sibling relationship, sibling influence
Abstract
An accumulating body of work indicates that siblings uniquely infl uence each other’s alcohol and substance use behaviors during adolescence. The mechanisms underlying these associations, however, are unknown because most studies have not measured sibling infl uence processes. The present study addressed this gap by exploring the links between multiple infl uence processes and sibling similarities in alcohol and substance use. Method: The sample included one parent and two adolescent siblings (earlier born age: M = 17.17 years, SD = 0.94; later born age: M = 14.52 years, SD = 1.27) from 326 families. Data were collected via telephone interviews with parents and the two siblings. Results: A series of logistic regressions revealed that, after parents’ and peers’ use as well as other variables including parenting was statistically controlled for, older siblings’ alcohol and other substance use was positively associated with younger siblings’ patterns of use. Furthermore, sibling modeling and shared friends were signifi cant moderators of these associations. For adolescents’ alcohol use, the links between sibling modeling and shared peer networks were interactive, such that the associations between modeling and similarity in alcohol use were stronger when siblings shared friends. Conclusions: Future research should continue to investigate the ways in which siblings infl uence each other because such processes are emerging targets for intervention and prevention efforts. (J. Stud. Alcohol Drugs, 74, 104–113, 2013)
Original Publication Citation
Whiteman, S. D., Jensen, A. C., & Maggs, J. L. (2013). Similarities in adolescent siblings' substance use: Testing competing pathways of influence. Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, 74, 104-113.
BYU ScholarsArchive Citation
Whiteman, Shawn D.; Jensen, Alexander C.; and Maggs, Jennifer L., "Similarities in Adolescent Siblings’ Substance Use: Testing Competing Pathways of Influence" (2013). Faculty Publications. 2662.
https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/facpub/2662
Document Type
Peer-Reviewed Article
Publication Date
2013-1
Permanent URL
http://hdl.lib.byu.edu/1877/5488
Publisher
Journal Study of Alcohol and Drugs
Language
English
College
Family, Home, and Social Sciences
Department
Family Life
Copyright Status
© 2013 by Alcohol Research Documentation, Inc.